22 Comments Add your own

• 1. Monkey  |  August 24th, 2009 at 9:51 am

  The Airfest is an incredibly well-run event. We’ve been every year since they brought it back and it just keeps getting better. Saw Bob O’Brien helping direct traffic on Sat. when we arrived and it’s great that he’s so hands on.

  The event is great for the region, great for the airport and great for the city. Congrats on a job well done!

• 2. LD  |  August 24th, 2009 at 10:08 am

  We had a great time. A special thanks to the airmen in the AWACS. They were great and my 3 year old had fun sitting at the various controls.

• 3. Kurt  |  August 24th, 2009 at 10:45 am

  I traveled from Joliet and was VERY impressed with the whole show. My family, friends and I purchased tickets to the Flight Line Chalet area and were blown away by the amenities and close proximity to the action. I attend a few shows every year and this will be a permanent addition to my calendar. Everyone that had anything to do with making this show happen should be very proud of the results.

• 4. Guy Stayner  |  August 24th, 2009 at 12:15 pm

  I was ask why we didn’t heve a parade of the local aircraft you had on display. Many were built here in the Rockford area by local people.

• 5. jjm  |  August 24th, 2009 at 1:28 pm

  Overall it was good, but I felt a bit disappointed. First, there was supposed to be a B2 Stealth Bomber flyby, but it never came and I heard nothing said by the announcers about it over the P.A. system. Many others were asking “where’s the B2?”. Also, the F-22 Raptor had a problem during the performance and landed, so we only got to see part of their show. I thought that’s why they bring 2 planes - in case one breaks down, the other can still do the show, but the other one didn’t take off and finish. ??? Also, the organizers need to have more porta-potties, the lines to use them were ridiculous.

• 6. Aaron  |  August 24th, 2009 at 3:59 pm

  We had a great time at the airshow. It was a nice change to have the Raptor there instead of the Blue Angels or Thunderbirds. The only complaint from my family was the walk from the $10 parking to the Gate. Why couldn’t they have an entrance closer like in years past? The kids were tired before we even got into the gate, but we’ll be back next year.

• 7. jjm  |  August 24th, 2009 at 6:20 pm

  Overall it was good, but I was a bit disappointed. First, there was supposed to be a flyover by the B2 Stealth Bomber. It never showed up. I heard nothing from the announcers over the P.A. system saying what was up with that. Others were also wondering as I was. Second, the F-22 Raptor demonstration was cut short because the plane had a problem and landed during the middle of it. They had 2 F-22’s, and I thought that was so if one jet breaks, the other can still fly and allow the show to go on, but the other one didn’t take off and finish the show. ??? Third, there wasn’t enough porta-potties. Lines for them were ridiculous.

• 8. Georgette Braun  |  August 25th, 2009 at 9:53 am

  To all: Thanks for posting comments. The comments don’t appear practically automatically like they used to. I now have to check for comments several times a day, and there was/is a delay in my OKing these.

  Thanks for your patience. We’re trying to get this remedied.

• 9. L Ross  |  August 25th, 2009 at 11:12 am

  Overall we enjoyed it. We were upset though before we even went. We went to the airport Friday morning to buy the family 4-pack only to be told that they were sold out. The website said nothing about there being a limited quantity of them available - only that they needed to be purchased at the airport before 4 pm on Friday. We would have gone earlier in the week, but got the impression there was no hurry. So we ended up spending twice what we would have. Other than that we had an enjoyable day and were there Sunday from start to finish. A bit sun-burned, but overall we were happy other than the misinformation regarding the family 4-pack deal.

• 10. jo blow  |  August 25th, 2009 at 3:27 pm

  Poor parking entry and exits, one gate in, paths through tiny fence openings, 1/10 of the restrooms that were needed…….. Not much fun there!!!

• 11. danny glover  |  August 25th, 2009 at 3:35 pm

  Poor traffic control, poor restrooms availability,announcer could not be heard everywhere you could sit, one entry in (just stupid and far away), and expensive the day of the show. Also, the parking just sucked!!!!!!!!!!

• 12. MPW  |  August 26th, 2009 at 9:58 am

  Traffic control was almost non-exitaned, with the exception of the State Police. Where was Rockford’s P.D.? Where was Rockford’s emergency equipment? Seen 4 different stations there, but none from Rockford. Parking, entry, and porta potties were a joke. This was my first and last time there, just did not enjoy it.

• 13. kim  |  August 26th, 2009 at 10:18 am

  This was my first airshow ever - and I really enjoyed it a lot. Parking was a long way from the entrance - but that didn’t really bother me. I got to the show at around 11:30 on Sunday and stayed all day. I never experienced the long lines for the bathrooms that others did. I do wish that the sound would have been set up so that the announcer could be heard from both ends of the airfield. I was on the far left side - and you could not hear the announcer at all. That was a huge disappointment and should really be addressed in my opinion. Seems like it should be an easy enough fix and no good excuse that it was set up that way. The lines were super long for the aircraft walk throughs - but there was enough to see and do that I didn’t see that as a huge deal. If I want to tour an aircraft next year - I’ll just come really early and get a jump on the line. Having only one exit seemed really poorly thought out to me. What if there had been some emergency need to evacuate the crowd? The one exit was a huge bottleneck upon exiting the show. Overall - I LOVED the show. I will definitely be back. Oh yeah - I thought the price point for entrance and parking was totally worth it.

• 14. MIke  |  August 26th, 2009 at 12:31 pm

  This was my first time to the air show. The performances were impressive and the entry costs were reasonable. I was really irked about a few things. First, it was way too overcrowded. Granted RFD didn’t know there would be such a big turnout and the bathrooms would be so overcrowded but the vendors were also overwhelmed. I was there for the show, not the food, but it took 45 minutes to get a refreshment of any kind, even bottled water, and of course they don’t allow you to bring in any drinks. The WORST part was they allowed a vendor to set up a hovercraft display in the grassy area of the spectator field where most people were sitting. These things were as loud as landscaping lawnmowers. These idiots kept running them during the demonstrations. Not only did they drowned out the announcer, they were almost as loud as the jets. If I were to attend next year, I will make sure the hovercrafts aren’t there.

• 15. Georgette Braun  |  August 26th, 2009 at 2:25 pm

  TO ALL: Keep these insightful comments coming. Our transportation reporter, Thomas Bona, is going to ask Bob O’Brien, airport director, about many of these concerns.

  See Bona’s blog post about AirFest at
  http://blogs.e-rockford.com/thepassengerseat/2009/08/24/a-raptor-ous-time-at-airfest/

• 16. Linda N  |  August 27th, 2009 at 6:35 am

  First time to the airfest. Had 2 kids with me, they were both ‘done’ in about 3 hours. The lines to see the planes were too long, we only toured one plane. We did pay extra for the chalet… definately worth it.

  My only complaint that I hope is taken care of next year… I saw elderly people walking from the parking lot, having to take a rest as they walked. There obviously needs to be Senior Citizen parking. I was truly saddened by seeing this.

• 17. Maryann Gagliano  |  August 27th, 2009 at 7:51 am

  I bought three tickets for the Captins Cabin and just loved the seats and the food. Because I did get there early, the parking was great!

• 18. terry pierce  |  August 27th, 2009 at 10:05 am

  great line-up of aircraft–could not see complete demo of the blackhawk since there was many obstructions of the runway,tents,big trucks etc.–bought the 4-pack of tickets which included $10 parking & tried to upgrade to better parking but was denied.– had to pay another $20 to park. overall we had a good time.

• 19. Julia Lesko  |  August 27th, 2009 at 11:20 am

  Howdy! My family & I enjoyed our time at the Airfest immensely. This year’s event was spectacular! We all were in awe of the Harrier Jet, the B1-B Bomber, and of course, the F-22 Raptor.

  However, I do have one suggestion. Why can’t there be an exit at the north end of the airport after the show ends at 5:00pm? My husband’s company’s chalet was at the north end of show central and our car was just north of the Shell Station of the airport road but we had to walk south towards the exit and then head north. It took over 20 minutes of walking to get back to our car. If there had been an exit at the north end of the airport, then our walk would have been maybe 5-7 minutes. It would certainly relieve congestion if an exit was opened to the north at the end of the show.

  But hey! Otherwise we had a great time! Keep up the great work on putting on an awesome show! Remember the roar of the jets’ engine is the sound of freedom. And freedom isn’t free!!!

• 20. Bruce Johnson  |  August 27th, 2009 at 12:23 pm

  I was very disappointed that one of the F22s was not on static display as advertised.

• 21. prsearls  |  August 27th, 2009 at 1:19 pm

  I’ve attended several AirFests in Rockford and this was the best by far. Parking and traffic will always be a problem with so few roads to/from the airport. I parked in the $20 lots on both days which was convenient. Having more than one entrance to the show would be a nice improvement next year.

  The civilian aerobatics were world-class and unless you’re a pilot, you may not appreciate how difficult and dangerous some of these routines are (NO room for error). The number and mix of military aircraft on static display and flying were impressive. I took my four year old grandson through the AWACS; he really enjoyed sitting at the consoles and seeing the cockpit. I personally enjoyed seeing the B-1B close up and seeing the other one fly (very impressive and sleek).

  The star of AirFest was the F-22 Raptor demo; it performed slow-speed maneuvers (tight turns and tail slide) that were jaw-dropping to see, especially if you’ve flown jets. Sunday’s demo was much better than the shortened one on Saturday. The B-2 no-show was a disappointment although I’m certain AirFest had no control over the matter.

  I’ve been to many airshows and this was the most enjoyable one I remember. I’ll certainly be back next year.

• 22. Kimberly  |  August 27th, 2009 at 2:59 pm

  This was my 1st air show and my last at least at RFD. We paid the $10 to park and we had to walk 45 minutes just to get to a gate! On our way we saw many people young and old struggle with the wonderful walkway that was made by chewed up asphalt prob from I-90 project. Had to sit and rest before we even made it to the gate. The lines were long for food and toilets. The fairgrounds has more potties then this place! A little boy probably 4 or 5 stood there in line crying to go potty after waiting 55 minutes he pee’d his pants. Poor performace Rockford! And they wonder why people go outside of this area for entertainment!

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